Colorado State football improved in first spring scrimmage

Coach Jim McElwain sees gains from first scrimmage

FORT COLLINS -- Jim McElwain joked that a year ago, his wife, Karen, had to remove all the sharp objects from his sight so he wouldn't be tempted to hurt himself.

But to his pleasure Saturday, all the sharp objects he was looking for could be found on the turf at Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium, as the first scrimmage of the spring unfolded. The tempo was better, as was the play, and the mistakes -- though still there -- were fewer as the Rams went through a 124-play workout.

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"Guys I tell you, night and day from a year ago," McElwain said. "I saw a bunch of guys competing. I thought we got a little sloppy toward the end; that's kind of to be expected just the way it moves, but I thought we saw some really good things from a lot of guys. Now it will be interesting to get it on video and get it graded and see where we're at."

Colorado State receiver Charles Lovett stretches to catch a ball in front of linebacker Ken Hulbert durign pre-scrimmage drills Saturday at Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium. During the scrimmage, Lovett caught seven passes for 153 yards and two scores.
(Steve Stoner)

Just from the eye test, McElwain felt the team has made major gains along the defensive line, and there was no other spot on the field that he would prefer to see that develop. He liked the play of incoming junior college transfers LaRyan King and Terry Jackson, with Jackson finishing with a sack and a forced fumble. Calvin Tonga, in his first spring after transferring in last fall, has really made major gains, giving McElwain the feeling there is depth being created at the position.

"We got ourselves better. We really did," he said. "The way Calvin Tonga is playing now, is that a whole different guy, or what? We got bigger, we got more physical. They went back and got away from the technique, but the good thing is we've got a lot of those junior college guys for three years. That's huge."

As for the quarterbacks, McElwain liked the way the main competitors ran their huddles, but it was Garrett Grayson who made the biggest splash statistically. He opened the day by leading the first team down the field on a nine-play scoring drive, capped by a 6-yard run by Chris Nwoke. Grayson hit four of his six passes for 62 yards. On the day, he threw for 221 yards on a 14-of-27 performance with one interception on a ball that went through a receiver's hands. That was a theme on the day McElwain didn't like, too many dropped balls. Thomas Coffman had one on a deep ball from Grayson early, but Grayson did finish with two scoring tosses, both to Charles Lovett.

Lovett, though small in stature, continues to play big, catching seven balls for 153 yards, showing a slick move on his first scoring catch to evade a defender.

"Chuck's really taken to this new system and how we do things, and he's kind of become a leader; he's doing things right, he does the things we expect of him off the field as well as on, and that shows in his play," McElwain said. "That will only increase his consistency and performance. I thought sometimes he was on and off. I thought today he consistently played the game the way you're supposed to."

Conner Smith was 11-of-20 for 101 yards, and Craig Leonard finished 4-of-9 for 65 with a 45-yard touchdown to Jake Levin, showing McElwain enough that he said he'd like to get the redshirt freshman a few more reps this week.

The other downside to the day for McElwain was fumbles -- three in all -- but that was also a good sign for the defense. That unit scored twice, with Josh Bowman returning an interception 52 yards and Kevin Pierre-Louis going 32 yards with a fumble. Shaq Barrett also stole the ball from running back Tommey Morris on one play and stripped Leonard on a pass rush.

In all, the defense had 10.5 sacks (three from linebacker Aaron Davis) and created some havoc.

From pre-scrimmage meetings, McElwain was impressed, especially seeing some of the younger Rams play a bigger role in the proceedings. The second time around was much better, leaving him in a much better mood the second time around.

"Our depth is way up there from a year ago," he said. "I'm excited for this football team."

Moving Around -- Center Weston Richburg played at both tackle positions, as well, something the Rams are looking at in terms of flexibility. In his place, redshirt freshman Fred Zerblis played center.

"He's really done a good job," McElwain said of the senior who has been a three-year starter at center. "There's such a difference in your sets and your footwork when you're playing at center and then you're playing on the edge, but I think he shows his versatility, and I was happy with that. I'm really happy with the way (tackles Jared) Baird and (Ty) Sambrailo are playing, too."

Sidelines -- Shaq Bell had the defense's other turnover, an interception off another ball deflected by a receiver. ... Kicker Jared Roberts was good on all three of his point-after attempts and both of his field goals (35 and 26). ... A walk-on last year, Robert Ruiz received punts and kicks during the scrimmage, and McElwain feels the 5-foot-9 wideout out of Valhalla, Calif., can play for the Rams this year. ... Donnell Alexander led the backs with 48 yards on eight carries. ... When working from their own goal line, the offense had a series of three false starts in four plays. McElwain said they earned some "extra curricular activity after practice on Monday."

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